Clem all alone in a world full of unknowns
by neonpink94
Summary: Clem has suffered many losses in her short life. Some were harder to endure than others. She is recently left alone in the world when all those who were close to her have perished. Does she have what it takes to survive a world full of the walking dead?
1. Introduction

Clementine looked around at her surroundings. There were hills that rose up all around her covered in healthy looking grass. She looked up and noticed the fading blue sky spotted with white clouds that were threatening to rain on her. She thought about Lee and tears began streaming down her face. What had she done! She had shot him in cold blood. He had begged for her to do so, but it didn't make it feel right. The expression on his face would haunt her for the rest of her life. He had looked so ... so defeated and weak and she had just shot him. Why did everyone she love have to die? She thought of the others from her group. Most of them had died trying to come to her rescue. She felt guilty that she was the reason for their death and would continue to do so for years to come. Her parents were dead along with all those from her group who had died previously. Why was the world so full of death? Why had she been so naive? Why had she believed the stranger? She should have listened to Lee. She could see that now. If she had so many people's lives could have been saved. Why had she been so stupid? She stopped herself there she couldn't lose hope like Lilly did. She has to make their deaths meaningful. She looked at her gun. It only had three bullets left in the chamber. She would have to start thinking about food, water, shelter, and ammo. This means that she has to focus entirely on survival. It isn't much of a way to live, but she doesn't exactly have a choice.


	2. Clem meets strangers

Looking up again she was surprised to see two figures off in the distance. Their backs were to her. She gasped. She wasn't sure what to do. She should follow Lee's instructions she thought. He always seemed to be right. She didn't have as good of instincts as him. She wanted him here with her so bad but she had to be strong. He wasn't coming back ever. She wiped the tears of her face. She got up off of the log she was sitting on and took a few shaky steps toward the mysterious figures her gun at the ready. She secretly hoped it was Christa and Omid, but seriously doubted it. She was only a few feet behind them when she stepped on a branch making a snapping noise. She gasped and looked up at the mysterious figures her brown eyes widening with fear. They turned to look towards her with their weapons at the ready. When they realized it was just a little girl and not a walker they put their weapons away not wanting to frighten her.

"Stay were you are!," she yelled trying to be brave but her voice was unsteady. The gun was shaking in her hand as she pointed it at them unsure of their motives.

They looked surprised at the fact that she was pointing a gun at them. They were both men. One had blond hair with brown eyes, he was in his mid 20's, caucasian, he wore a gray and black plaid button up shirt with blue jeans and nikes. He had specks of dried blood all over his clothes, face and shoes. The other man wore a blue t shirt with faded unreadable words printed across his chest, converse and blue jeans splattered with dried blood, he was in his late teens with greasy jet black hair, blue eyes and he was also caucasian. They each carried a medium sized backpack on their backs.

"Is this what this fucking world has come to," asked the guy with the black hair pointing to Clem in disbelief.

"You can't be any older then ten," the blond haired guy gasped.

Clem thought that they seemed alright but you could never be sure. The St. John's had seemed alright too but they were eating people. They had tried to feed her Mark. She shuddered.

"Are there more of you?," she asked unsure of what she should ask them.

"Woah! Hold on don't we at least get to know your name first?," asked the black haired guy trying to ease the growing tension between them.

"I guess that's alright ... my name is Clementine," she said nervously.

"I'm John and this is Charley," the black haired guy said pointing to the blond haired guy on his right.

"Can you answer my questions now?," Clem asked.

"I will if you lower your gun," Charley stated.

Clem lowered it and suspiciously eyed John and Charley ready to use it at a moments notice.

"They were 3 others but they perished in that fucking death trap. The walkers got to them before we could save them. We are all that's left of our group," Charley said regrettably pointing towards the city and then lowering his head.

"Oh I'm sorry," she muttered understanding where they were coming from.

He looked up, "It's okay. It's not like it's your fault," Charley said taking in the little girls frightened and sorrowful face.

Clem felt guilty about how her own group had died because of her. Stay focused she told herself.

"So how about you? Are you on your own out here?," John asked curiously.

"Yes...," she said suspiciously.

"What happened to your group?," John asked shocked.

"They were all killed by walkers except one. I...I shot him cause he was bit," she said regrettably.

"That's pretty badass! Remind me not to mess with you," Charley replied surprised at the bravery of this little girl.

"We should get going it's getting dark. Would you like to join us Clementine?," John asked leaving it entirely up to her.

She was thinking it over when a walker came up behind Charley and John. She raised her gun without hesitation and aimed in between them.

"Come on not with the gun..." John was cut of by the bullet shooting forward from the barrel with a loud BANG and rushing by his arm moving at an upward trajectory towards the walker.

She could see the disbelief and questioning look in their eyes as she took the shot. She pointed behind them and they turned surprised to see a dead walker that was hit right between the eyes with her bullet.

"Damn that's some good shooting! I believe a thanks is in order, but we could have and should have taken it out silently," Charley said pointing to his katana and John's machete.

"Come on that will attract them! We have got to get the hell out of here!," John yelled taking off running.

Charley was right by his side. Clem decided her best chance of survival was with them and took off running alongside them struggling to keep up with their long stride. They slowed down a little bit when they took notice of Clem following them and that made it slightly easier for her to keep up.


	3. Settling into her new life

Earlier that morning Clementine had taken off running with two complete strangers. It was due to the fact that she had a shot a walker that was behind them. She had wanted to prove her usefulness, but unfortunately she hadn't thought of the consequences. The noise had attracted quite a few of them that were roaming the grassy plains of Savannah. Charley and John had protected her by taking turns killing the geeks that had gotten to close. She felt safe with them, but wasn't willing to trust them yet.

At the moment they were camped out in a dingy tent. Charley was out taking watch while John was helping her pass the time with his story telling skills. She remembered some of the tales he told her from story books that her parents had used to read to her. Others were so new and foreign that they effectively drew her attention away from the grim outside world … and Lee's demise.

The surrounding area was quiet and seemed to be devoid of any walker activity. John was due to take over soon and Clem wasn't looking forward to the change. She was enjoying his company. He reminded her of Lee in some ways. He was nice to her and always trying to make her feel better. He looked at her like a kid and not some fellow survivor.

It was nice to be treated like a kid again. She may not have been as innocent as she once was, but that didn't mean she wasn't a kid thrown into world that was beyond her understanding. Things had been black and white to her before. People were either good or bad. Now she was beginning to understand there was a grey area and people weren't as defined as she once thought.

It was something she had begun to learn when she was kidnapped by Campman. He had lured her to him with promises of her getting to see her parents, but that wasn't what had happened. Sure she had seen her parents but it wasn't because of him. He had wanted Lee. He had wanted to hurt him and it scared her that Campman could be so cruel and so seemingly nice at the same time.

Lee had come to her rescue but got bit in the process. It was all her fault and she knew it. If nothing else at least she knew what had happened to her parents. The not knowing had been eating away at her. It was almost like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. That didn't mean that she didn't miss them. Cause she did. That didn't mean she didn't feel pain over what had happened to them. Cause she did. It just meant that she knew and that she could move on.

"Clementine you okay? You kinda blanked out on me," John said drawing her away from her thoughts.

"Yeah just got lost in my head is all," she said with a sad tone.

John looked at Clementine. He seemed to think something over before replying, "I'm sorry about the guy in your group."

He didn't have to say much for Clementine to know who he was talking about.

She sighed, "Me too."

John started to get lost in his memories as he spoke them aloud, "I lost my sister in all this mess. It was towards the beginning. It was stupid really. She had gone outside to play in the backyard. She was around your age. Anyways what I didn't know was that one of the crazies from the news had broken through the fencing. One minute she was sitting down playing in the grass and the next she's being bitten into by one of the freaks. I was alerted by her screams," he flinched, "Everything seemed to go into fast motion after that. I grabbed the closest thing I could find and ran to her. I don't even remember what it was. All I knew was that I killed the freak, but … by that time it was too late. I refused to believe she was doomed to be infected. My stubbornness got my mom killed," he paused for a second, "I guess my point is that the hurt never goes away but you learn to live with it."

Clementine started to say in the same sad tone, "The man I lost was probably my closest friend. His name was Lee. He was kinda like a big brother. He protected me and saved me countless times. I just wish I could have returned the favor, but I wasn't strong enough. I wasn't strong like he was and in the end he died saving me. I know it's my fault he's dead."

A few tears slipped down Clem's face as the pain of saying it aloud hit her. It made it more tangible somehow. Before it was like a bad dream, one she was certain she would wake up from. Now it was real.

"Don't beat yourself up about it kid. I'm sure this Lee fellow wouldn't want you focusing in on the bad. Just remember the good times and make his death meaningful," John replied simply as he awkwardly patted her on the back.

She nodded and wiped the tears from her face. She promised Lee she would beat this world and she had every intention of doing that.


	4. First day with new group

The next morning arrived slower than she thought possible. She felt tired and it was hard to focus. Her sleep state had been filled with nightmares. They were images of those she had lost. They had danced behind her tightly closed eyes, reminding her, and haunting her. Something a nine year old shouldn't have to deal with, but was forced to in this extremely bleak world.

She sat up. Clem glanced around and was confused at the small confines of the tent. Then she remembered her meeting with Charley and John the day prior. She still wasn't sure what to think of them. They seemed alright but what would happen when they turned out to be like Campman or the St. Johns even. She unintentionally flinched. They were different. They had to be. She didn't know what she would do if they weren't.

She reached under her pillow. She was searching for the gun she had stowed there earlier. One of her hands touched the cool metal of the object she was seeking. She wrapped her hand around it securely before pulling it out. Clem looked at it. It felt big and awkward in her small hands. It brought back the memories she didn't want to deal with … but it was the last thing she had left of Lee. It was a bittersweet memento of him.

She clutched it to her chest wishing he was there. Lee would know what to do and he would know whether or not Charley and John were trustworthy. He knew everything. It was a trait she had once thought could only exist in her father, but Lee had proven otherwise. She clumsily unzipped the tent and made her way out of it. The blinding rays of the sun made her place one of her small hands over her eyes.

As her vision came back into focus she noticed Charley and John were standing off to the side. They had their heads bent over a well-worn map. She remained rooted to her spot, unsure. John looked over at her and gestured for her to come forward. The gun hung loosely from her side as she took a few tentative steps towards them. Charley gave her a small smile that most likely had been forced.

She made it to where she was standing just a few feet from them. John bent down to her level. He held the map out in front of her. His pointer finger indicated where they were located. He then slide his finger across the smooth surface of it to a nearby town.

"We were thinking about heading into this town. You wouldn't be interested in joining us would you?" He looked up at her as he waited for her answer. He seemed to be genuinely leaving the decision up to her.

She mulled it over in her head. Clementine wasn't sure how long she could survive out here alone. Charley and John were her best bet of survival. She looked up at John and gave a small nod of her head. He smiled at her before standing up straight. Charley took the map from him and folded it up before placing it in his back pack.

"How about some breakfast huh?" Charley said to no one in particular.

He then sat down on the ground and started to riffle through his bag.

"Sounds good to me," John replied joining him on the floor.

Clem stayed standing. She watched curiously as Charley withdrew a large can followed by two medium ones from his bag. He looked up at her as held one of the smaller ones out. Her tummy grumbled as she gratefully took it. She plopped down on the grassy floor next to him. She was looking forward to the prospect of eating. It was something that wasn't taken lightly these days.

She examined the can. She was looking for a way to open the thing. Clem grew frustrated when she noticed it didn't have a pull tab like some did. John noticed her troubles and took it from her as he opened it with his pocket knife in one swift motion. He handed it back to her and she hungrily dove into with the spoon that had been given to her by Charley. Clem barely tasted the food as she shoveled it into her mouth.

All she knew was that it was so good and she reached the bottom of the can quicker than she liked. She looked up. She watched as John finished off the last few spoonfuls of his own can and Charley stared off into space lost in a distance memory she wasn't privy to.

She felt a wet droplet of rain fall on her cheek. She looked up questioningly at the sky. It had been so nice just moments ago now it was starting to pour. Georgia weather was never something she would even begin to understand. Well that along with about a million other things.

Clem, Charley, and John made their way to the tent seeking refuge from the water falling from the sky. Looks like their plans would be slightly delayed until the rain stopped, which could be mere moments or hours. Clementine sat down and pulled her legs up to her chest. She rested her head on her knees. She watched as John and Charley spread the contents of their bags out.

They had decided to do something useful with their time and were now taking inventory of what meager supplies they had left. All Clem had was the clothes on her back and Lee's gun that had somehow become hers. It felt wrong. He should be here with her. Figuring things out same as she was but he was gone. He would never return no matter how much she wished he would.

Charley ran his hand over the bullets before looking up at Clem. "Is it okay if I borrow your gun for a second?"

She looked at him warily. "Why?"

"Just want to see what you got there. I might have some bullets that will work for it, but I don't know what brand it is or what ammo it takes," he explained.

She pulled the gun from her hoodie pocket and gave it a parting glance before handing it over to him. He examined it only to find out he didn't have the right ammo. Charley promised her they would look for some on their supply run into town. Her mind wandered as she thought about the endless possibilities about how it would go.


	5. Adventures of Clem

Clem followed behind John and Charley in a way that was now second nature to her. They had been trudging through the vacant land of Savannah for what seemed like days. She wasn't sure exactly how long she had been with them, time always seemed to blur together for her. All she knew was that they didn't seem to be making much process. Charley had reassured Clementine a few times that today would be the day they reached the town. They were running low on food and she hoped he was right. It seemed like he knew was doing. Well at least compared to John.

While John hadn't a clue where they were on the map Charley always did. It made her wonder what Charley had been before all this went down but she never gained enough courage to ask. People liked to leave the past in the past. It was something she understood. Memories were just an agonizing reminder of what should have been. It didn't mean she wanted to forget them but they were painful nevertheless.

She looked up and scanned the area for the umpteenth time that day. Charley had warned her to be aware of her surroundings and she was getting better at it. She would glance up every once in a while and had even caught sight of a couple walkers that Charley and John had missed. It made her feel useful and a smidgen proud. Not that it was going to her head or anything.

"Guys," John said in a warning tone that Clem didn't like.

She peered around John's lanky form. Then she saw what he must have. She gasped. There were other survivors. From the distance they appeared to be a group of five but who knew if there were more. She went on the defensive immediately and gripped her gun. It was her security blanket.

"Fuck Charley what do we do?" John said looking up at him.

"Go around them," Charley replied without much hope in his voice.

"It's to flat they'll see. Hell I'm surprised they don't see us now," John answered.

Charley ran his hand over his face. He sighed. "I don't know."

"Maybe they'll go away," Clem said with childlike hope.

"They've set up camp. They're not going anywhere," John didn't even bother to look down at Clem as he said it.

Clem's face fell and her eyes widened. She wished she was as brave as Lee, but she wasn't. She was nervous and unsure. She glanced back at the camp and noticed that a couple of their members were coming towards them. Her heart picked up its pace. She looked up at Charley and John, but they were too focused on their muted conversation/argument to notice.

She tugged on John's sleeve. He looked down at her and she pointed. His body tensed up as he shoved her behind him. It was a weak attempt to protect her from the approaching threat. Charley stood next to John and she hid behind their forms. Clem gripped her gun tighter and thought about the two remaining rounds it held. She could do this. She would take the person out if it came down to that.

_Lee's defeated face popped into her head. "I'll miss you," he had said. _She shook her head willing the image to go was bad._ His blood had splattered the walls as the bullet made its way through. She had stood there observing his lifeless corpse for a few seconds before leaving. She had repeated over and over in her head that he was gone_. _It hadn't seemed real._ The finality hadn't set in till her conversation with John.

She thought_. "I can do this. I promised Lee. I won't let him down."_

Her heart skipped a beat as the people stood just a few feet from them. She followed John and Charley's example and raised her gun.

"Lower your weapons," an unfamiliar man's voice drawled.

He looked to be in his mid-30's. He had brown hair that matched his eyes. He was wearing a sturdy pair of tennis shoes with a frayed pair of pants and a t-shirt.

"No," John replied unwaveringly.

"Let's be reasonable about this. You guys were getting pretty close to our camp. We don't want any trouble," another man said.

He looked older, fifties maybe. His hair had streaks of grey mixed in with the black. It was cropped short in a way that made his blue eyes shine. He was wearing blue jeans with loafers and a button down shirt.

"That's understandable. We were just on our way through," Charley answered.

"Well how about we all lower our weapons and we can swap survivor stories back at our camp. It's been a while since we met any decent survivors and I'm sure your little one is hungry," the grey haired man said with a sad smile.

Clem looked up at John and Charley trying to gauge what they were thinking. Their expressions were stoic. They reluctantly lowered their weapons but kept them at the ready. The other two men followed suit as did Clem.

"Dwayne we don't know anything about them. The fact that they have a kid doesn't mean shit. Think about Hannah and Jeanie," the brown haired man stated.

The grey and the brown haired men then exchanged a few more words in hushed tones. Clem only made out a few phrases like 'don't trust them' and 'it's all on you then'.

The grey haired man looked up. "Like I said before you're welcome to visit our camp. You just won't be able to keep your weapons on you. We'll hold them for you till your departure. That is if you decide to join us."

The brown haired man shook his head and muttered under his breath, "Stupid old fool."

Clem looked up at Charley and John as they shared a few words.


End file.
